Gaza official: Palestinian death toll tops 300

The Associated Press

Posted:
07/18/2014 01:57:42 AM CDT

Updated:
07/19/2014 12:52:44 AM CDT

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Hazy Gaza City is seen in northern Gaza strip early Saturday, July 19, 2014. Israeli troops pushed deeper into Gaza on Friday in a ground offensive that officials said could last up to two weeks as the prime minister ordered the military to prepare for a "significantly" wider campaign. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis)

Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Kidra said Saturday that overnight airstrikes killed nine people. The Israeli military says three soldiers were wounded, one seriously, in the second night of Israel's ground offensive in Gaza.

Israel launched a ground operation late Thursday after becoming increasingly exasperated with unrelenting rocket fire from Gaza, especially following Hamas' rejection of an Egyptian cease-fire plan earlier this week.

Israeli officials say the offensive is aimed at destroying Hamas tunnels dug into Israel and that it could last up to two weeks.

Palestinians inspect the rubble of a building to pick up their usable belongings after it was hit by an Israeli missile strike in Gaza City, Friday, July 18, 2014. Israeli troops pushed deeper into Gaza on Friday to destroy rocket launching sites and tunnels, firing volleys of tank shells and clashing with Palestinian fighters in a high-stakes ground offensive meant to weaken the enclave's Hamas rulers. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa) (Hatem Moussa/AP)

Israel's military chief Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz visited troops on the Gaza border early Saturday and said "a strategic national patience is necessary" to complete the operation.

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A Palestinian man burns a tire during clashes with Israeli soldiers following a protest against the Israeli offensive in Gaza, outside Ofer, an Israeli military prison near the West Bank city of Ramallah, Friday, July 18, 2014. Israeli troops pushed deeper into Gaza on Friday to destroy rocket launching sites and tunnels, firing volleys of tank shells and clashing with Palestinian fighters in a high-stakes ground offensive meant to weaken the enclave?s Hamas rulers. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed) (Majdi Mohammed/AP)

Protesters chant slogans against Israel to condemn its bombing on Gaza and to demand Hamas and other Palestinian brigades in Gaza reject any truce with Israel, during a protest by followers of the Muslim Brotherhood in Amman, Jordan, Friday, July 18, 2014. The Arabic writing reads, "The Arab regimes are Zionists." Israeli troops pushed deeper into Gaza on Friday to destroy rocket launching sites and tunnels, firing volleys of tank shells and clashing with Palestinian fighters in a high-stakes ground offensive meant to weaken the enclave's Hamas rulers. (AP Photo/Mohammad Hannon) (Mohammad Hannon/AP)

An Israeli soldier walks with a prayer shawl near the border of Israel and Gaza, Friday, July 18, 2014. Israeli troops pushed deeper into Gaza on Friday to destroy rocket launching sites and tunnels, firing volleys of tank shells and clashing with Palestinian fighters in a high-stakes ground offensive meant to weaken the enclave's Hamas rulers. Israel launched the operation late Thursday, following a 10-day campaign of more than 2,000 air strikes against Gaza that had failed to halt relentless Hamas rocket fire on Israeli cities. (AP Photo/Tsafrir Abayov) (Tsafrir Abayov/AP)

Palestinians inspect the rubble of a house after it was hit by an Israeli missile strike in Gaza City, Friday, July 18, 2014. Israeli troops pushed deeper into Gaza on Friday to destroy rocket launching sites and tunnels, firing volleys of tank shells and clashing with Palestinian fighters in a high-stakes ground offensive meant to weaken the enclave's Hamas rulers.(AP Photo/Hatem Moussa) (Hatem Moussa/AP)